Home » Members helping each other: Nature.house and Natuurpunt join forces for viper conservation

Members helping each other: Nature.house and Natuurpunt join forces for viper conservation

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In the second half of 2020, Nature.house joined the Eurosite network as an associate member to gain easier access to a network of European conservationists. Their mission is to bring people closer to nature by providing tourists to book vacation homes that are basically in the middle of nature. The company likes to give something back to nature, so that we can continue to enjoy it together for a long time to come. For every booking Nature.house donates €1 to local nature projects.

Among the most recent projects Nature.house supports is a Natuurpunt project concerning the conservation of the viper and its habitat in ‘De Kempen’, a natural area near Antwerp, Belgium. The area covers the Visbeek valley, and is comprised of varied sites of arable land, heathlands, pine as well as deciduous forests, and swamps. The area’s jewel is the viper. The species can be spotted in merely two other areas in Flanders and is threatened with extinction.

To prevent the extinction of the area’s viper population, Eurosite member Natuurpunt launched ‘Plan Adder’: a project to install measures to restore the habitats of this rare snake. To support Natuurpunt in doing so, Nature.house financially contributed to the project to ensure the viper can cross roads safely:

Natuurpunt will build so-called reptile tunnels as well as grid channels. To further ensure connectivity among sites, the environment of these tunnels will be accommodated with guiding structures, temporary resting areas, and corridors to connected sites. The wintering grounds of the vipers are, despite prohibition signs, often visited by visitors (including visitors that let their dogs off the leash). To take this threat away, a grid will be placed to restrict access to the area. In addition will some heathlands be restored via tree removal, turfing, and the placement of fences. 

Photo credit: Hugo Willocx, Natuurpunt.